Interfacial phenomena affected by morphology and texture of carbons and their composites
Abstract
Carbon materials (CM) and their composites (CMC) are characterized by various particulate morphologies, textures, surface structures (e.g., oxidation/reduction degree), and other characteristics. Therefore, a search for regularities for numerous CM/CMC concerning interfacial phenomena, including sorption from different phases, could be a complex task. To elucidate essential aspects of the phenomena, various experimental (e.g., electron microscopy, sorption of probes, spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry, etc.) and theoretical (e.g., quantum chemistry) methods could be used with maximum detailed analyses using well-developed computation methods (such as simple and self-consistent regularization procedures). Dozens of CM/CMC have been analyzed here with respect to (i) particulate morphology, textural and surface characteristics; (ii) sorption of organic and inorganic compounds as solutes/eluates in different media; and (iii) confined space and cryoscopic effects for individual and mixed solvents vs. temperature (at T < Tfreezing) and concentrations. The obtained results could be of interest from both theoretical and practical points of view because they show different aspects of the interfacial phenomena occurring in confined pore space of various carbons and composites characterized by different morphology, texture, and surface structure. This is important for optimization of the CM/CMC characteristics for effective use of them in practical applications.